


Heavy Lifting

by inbox



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout: New Vegas
Genre: Camping, Hand Jobs, Insomnia, M/M, Non-Reciprocal, what's better than this; guys being dudes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-25
Updated: 2017-02-25
Packaged: 2018-04-08 19:00:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,931
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4316076
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inbox/pseuds/inbox
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Who needs sleeping aids when your taciturn travelling buddy is courteous enough to give you a helping hand?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Heavy Lifting

So much for sleep. Maybe it was the somewhat dubious jerky they'd had for dinner, maybe it was the beers, maybe it was because he wasn't exactly accustomed to roughing it in the great outdoors on such short notice. Ade had laid awake for what felt like hours, his sweat-stained jacket balled up into a pillow under his cheek, watching the campfire fade from flame to coals as he tried to turn his mind off and snatch a few hours of sleep before a long day of hiking back to Vegas.

Whatever skill Boone had for finding sleep whenever the opportunity arose, Ade wanted it. He'd laid his bedroll at Ade's back - _defensive position_ , he said, ignoring Ade's jibes about spooning – and fallen asleep as soon as he'd pulled his share of the blanket under his chin. Ade added it to the very, very short list of things he knew about his latest follower, along with 'prefers beer', 'pisses with the door open' and 'doesn't make small talk'. _Sleeps like a log, doesn't snore_. If this level of camaraderie kept up, he thought, he might progress to hitherto unknown levels of friendship with the terse sniper, up to and including 'makes conversation other than single word answers'.

Ade rolled his eyes at the stars, and fussed a little with the blanket rucked over his shoulders. _Who cares_ , he thought. _Who cares._

They'd laid down their sleeping mats when the moon was still touching the treetops. Now, with it pinned high in the middle of the sky and sleep still beyond his grasp, Ade rolled onto his side and sighed.

"You right?" Boone's voice was more alert than a man roused from sleep should be as he sat up on one elbow to scan the area, yanking the thin wool blanket with him and letting a rush of chilled night air rush between them.

"Fine," said Ade, pulling the blanket back with a grunt. "Relax. I didn't mean to wake you."

Boone made a noise that might be _I see_ or _uh huh_ or _brahminshit_ , or any other number of things.

"Go back to sleep," said Ade. "I'm keeping watch. You relax."

Boone hesitated for a moment then relaxed down to the mat, smoothing the blanket and making himself comfortable. "Can't sleep?"

"Insomnia," replied Ade, not bothering to embroider the conversation any more than necessary.

"Try counting Bighorners."

It took Ade a moment to realise that Boone was attempting a joke, and he looked over his shoulder to see Boone grinning at him, his teeth bright in the firelight.

"My stars," said Ade dryly. "I didn't know you made jokes."

"Do when the mood is right."

"I'm glad the mood is right for something," said Ade, a little more petulantly than a grown man had any right to be, sleep or no sleep. He turned back to resume his intense reverie with the smoldering coals.

Boone let the moment pass without comment, something that Ade felt momentarily grateful for. He wasn't exactly worried about making a sterling impression on a man he'd only met a week prior and would probably never see again after a week more, but still. It was the principle of the damn thing.

"Used to take me hours to fall asleep," said Boone after a while. "Out on manoeuvres. Fussing about rocks 'neath my mat, trying to kip with a fire in face." He fidgeted with the blanket some more. "Trying to sleep with some brick wall blocking the fire heat."

"Hey," said Ade. "It's not like I asked you to take up position at my back."

Boone chuckled. "You're plenty warm. I've slept with worse."

"Excellent," said Ade. "Not the worst man you've slept with. I'll chalk that one up as compliment."

"Not the best either."

"Yeah? What am I, not your type?"

"Dunno about that. Always liked 'em tall and dark."

"Hey now," said Ade. "Hey now." He cast about for something to say, momentarily lost for words.

"Don't mean nothing by it," said Boone after a while, his voice coloured with the faintest tinge of concern. "Just making noise."

"It's fine. Just conversation, I know." Ade stared at the fire as if it was about to offer him a salvo from this conversational minefield. He was completely at sea by the fact that he couldn't turn around and peer into Boone's unreadable stone face and glean out whether he was bullshitting him or hinting or fishing for something or what, Ade couldn't tell. Forty five years on this godforsaken earth and he still - _still_ \- couldn't get a read on whether someone was testing the waters or not.

No wonder he didn't keep 'em around long enough to meet his momma.

"Don't want your wife getting the wrong idea."

"Oh," said Ade, then _oh_ as he finally paid attention to what Boone was saying. "Oh, uh, trust me. That is not an issue. That is so far beyond not an issue that's it's, um, not an issue." He cringed a little at the words coming out of his mouth. _Smooth. Real smooth._

The fire continued to settle without passing judgement on him.

"So what's your secret to falling asleep?" It wasn't the slickest segue he'd ever produced, but desperate times call for desperate measures and railroading the conversation back onto level ground seemed like the most sensible thing to do. Well, the most sensible short of turning around and asking _excuse me, but I need you to tell me if that was a hamhanded attempt at flirting or not, thank you in advance for your cooperation_. "Don't tell me it's counting Bighorners."

"Practice. Just switching off, I mean. Relaxing." There was a slight pause. "Or jerk off."

Ade snorted with laughter. "Is that what you've been doing behind my back all night?"

"Heh. Nah. You're safe."

"I'll keep that in mind though," said Ade, deciding to throw all caution to the wind and hope for the best. Fortune favours the brave. Fumbled fireside handjobs favour the bold. "It'd be better if someone jerked me off though."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," said Ade. "I mean, if we're talking about the optimal way to fall asleep here. Theoretically speaking. Someone else does all the heavy lifting, I reap the rewards."

"Heavy lifting. I like that."

"That's what all the men tell me," said Ade, silently offering up a prayer to whoever would listen that this wasn't all a big understanding and that they hadn't been talking at cross purposes for the past five minutes. "I am some serious heavy lifting."

"So no wife then," said Boone eventually.

"Ah, no. Trust me. No wife."

"Hmm."

Ade rolled his eyes. Well, so much for that. At least it made for a momentary distraction on what was an otherwise long, boring, restless night. He could go back to his vigil of watching the stars, then greet the new day bleary eyed and cranky and continue like their little campfire tete-a-tete hadn't happened.

"Hmm," said Boone again and rolled over onto his side, sending the blanket every which way as he tentatively rested a big hand on the sharp jut of Ade's hipbone. Boone's breath was hot and damp against his neck, a steady in and out of air as questing fingertips rucked up the hem of his shirt to trace questioning circles in the whorls of hair on his belly.

Ade debated on what to say. _Are you going to buy me a drink first_ , or a joke, anything really to break the ice. Eventually he settled for a _hmm_ of his own. Boone didn't seem the type to appreciate suaveness. No need to waste his good material when he'd already progressed to thumbing open Ade's belt with one hand and easing down his zipper, tooth by tooth, the backs of his fingers flush against Ade's half hard cock.

"You want me to stop," said Boone after a moment.

"If you do I'll throw you into the fire." Ade shifted a little, canted his hips enough that Boone could easily cup his dick through the soft cotton of his undershorts. He palmed Ade with enough confidence that for a moment he was tempted, _totally_ tempted to ruin the moment by asking if this is something that he'd had some practice with. Boone felt him through the fabric, mapping the solid weight of his cock from root to tip over and over again, his touch unhurried and slow.

"Serious heavy lifting," said Boone, more to himself than to Ade, and chuckled as he awkwardly shoved the loose elastic down with one hand enough to pull his dick free. "You weren't kidding."

"It's a gift and a curse," said Ade, feeling a little out of breath already.

Boone didn't say anything to that, busying himself with giving his palm a good long lick and taking him back in hand, loose and easy, working his foreskin back and forth between his thumb and forefinger.

Ade couldn't help the impulse to fuck his hand a little, rocking his hips in short sharp jerks and biting his lip like a fool schoolboy when Boone tightened his grip a little.

“You good?”

“Yeah,” he said, curling his toes. “Yeah, real good.” He braced one hand into his sleeping mat, knuckles blanching pale as Boone smeared his pre with every tug, the pad of his thumb firm against his slit and brushing against his frenulum until Ade was breathing out a steady _fuck, fuck, yeah_ on every stroke.

He didn't last long. Didn't try and hold back none. It didn't seem appropriate, not when Boone was being so... so courteous. Lending a hand, right? After a moment of indecision he cupped at his balls, gently pulling the skin taut and hoping that the pass of his arm under Boone's thick forearm wasn't too much, too interactive. Like that was an intimacy too far, with Boone's breath tickling at the fine hairs on the back of his neck, fingers wrapped around the crown of his dick, exactly a week after saying hello for the first time.

He decided not to overthink it.

“I'm gonna...” he said, wheezy and breathless as he pushed into Boone's palm with short sharp jerks of his hips, no further back than his center of gravity. Sure tempting to push the limits a little and slot his ass neat against Boone's lap, though. Tempting to get a feel if this was Boone's idea of a campfire courtesy, like passing a jar of chicory or shaking out a sleeping mat. _Hey fella, you good?_

“I know,” said Boone.

“No, I'm gonna...”

“I said, _I know_ ,” said Boone a little more forcefully. He didn't skip a beat as Ade came with a low groan, cupping his palm a little to catch semen as much as possible, smearing it along his shaft as he stroked out the last aftershocks of his orgasm.

“Christ,” said Ade eventually, after Boone had let him go and rolled back away, wiping his hand clean on the back of Ade's shirt square between the shoulder-blades. “That's...”

“No problem,” said Boone, as implacable as ever. “Happy to help.” He sounded as if he'd done nothing more strenuous – or personal – than pass over a bottle of water.

“Better than counting Bighorners,” said Ade after a while. He yawned.

“Yep.” Boone laced his hands behind his head. “You kip. I'll keep watch.”

 _If I need your help with some heavy lifting again..._ thought Ade, but thought better of it. Then he said it anyway. To hell with it.

“We'll see,” said Boone. He almost sounded amused. “Sleep tight.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted 2015-07-11, updated 2017-02-25.


End file.
